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The Holy Family of Jesus, Mary and Joseph 2021

DEVOTIONAL PRAYER FOR DECEMBER
Prayer to the Holy Family 

Jesus, Mary and Joseph, in you we contemplate the splendour of true love; to you we turn with trust.  

Holy Family of Nazareth, grant that our families too may be places of communion and prayer, authentic schools of the Gospel and small domestic churches.  

Holy Family of Nazareth, make us more mindful of the sacredness and inviolability of the family, and its beauty in God’s plan.  

Jesus, Mary and Joseph graciously hear our prayer.  Amen. 


Entrance Antiphon
The shepherds went in haste, and found Mary and Joseph and the Infant lying in a manager. 

1st Reading (1 Sam 1:20-22, 24-28)
A reading from the first book of Samuel.
Hannah conceived and gave birth to a son, and called him ‘Samuel’ since she said ‘I asked the Lord for him’. When a year had gone by, the husband Elkanah went up again with all his family to offer the annual sacrifice to the Lord and to fulfil his vow. Hannah, however, did not go up. Having said to her husband, ‘Not before the child is weaned. Then I will bring him and present him before the Lord and he shall stay there for ever.’ When she had weaned him, she took him up with her together with a three-year-old bull, an ephah of flour and a skin of wine, and she brought him to the temple of the Lord at Shiloh; and the child was with them. They slaughtered the bull and the child’s mother came to Eli. She said, ‘If you please, my lord. As you live, my lord, I am the woman who stood here beside you, praying to the Lord. This is the child I prayed for, and the Lord granted me what I asked him. Now I make him over to the Lord for the whole of his life. He is made over to the Lord.’ There she left him, for the Lord.
The Word of the Lord. 

Responsorial Psalm
How happy they who dwell in your house, O Lord.

2nd Reading (1 Jn 3:1-2, 21-24 )
A reading from 
the first letter of St. John.

Think of the love that the Father has lavished on us, by letting us be called God’s children; and that is what we are. Because the world refused to acknowledge him, therefore it does not acknowledge us. My dear people, we are already the children of God but what we are to be in the future has not yet been revealed, all we know is, that when it is revealed we shall be like him because we shall see him as he really is. My dear people, if we cannot be condemned by our own conscience, we need not be afraid in God’s presence, and whatever we ask him, we shall receive, because we keep his commandments and live the kind of life that he wants. His commandments are these: that we believe in the name of his Son Jesus Christ and that we love one another as he told us to. Whoever keeps his commandments lives in God and God lives in him. We know that he lives in us by the Spirit that he has given us.
The Word of the Lord. 

Gospel Acclamation
Alleluia, alleluia!
 Open our hearts, O Lord, to listen to the words of your Son. Alleluia! 

Gospel (Lk 2:41-52)
A reading from the holy Gospel according to Luke.
Every year the parents of Jesus used to go to Jerusalem for the feast of the Passover. When he was twelve years old, they went up for the feast as usual. When they were on their way home after the feast, the boy Jesus stayed behind in Jerusalem without his parents knowing it. They assumed he was with the caravan, and it was only after a day’s journey that they went to look for him among their relations and acquaintances. When they failed to find him they went back to Jerusalem looking for him everywhere. Three days later, they found him in the Temple, sitting among the doctors, listening to them and asking them questions; and all those who heard him were astounded at his intelligence and his replies. They were overcome when they saw him, and his mother said to him, ‘My child, why have you done this to us? See how worried your father and I have been, looking for you.’ ‘Why were you looking for me?’ he replied. ‘Did you not know that I must be busy with my Father’s affairs?’ But they did not understand what he meant. He then went down with them and came to Nazareth and lived under their authority. His mother stored up all these things in her heart. And Jesus increased in wisdom, in stature, and in favour with God and men.
The Gospel of the Lord. 

Communion Antiphon
Our God has appeared on the earth, and lived among us. 

Next Week’s Readings
Is 60:1-6;   Eph 3:2-3, 5-6;   Mt 2:1-12

Feasts of the Week
Mon, 27 Dec  - St. John, Apostle, Evangelist
Tue, 28 Dec - The Holy Innocents, Martyrs
Sat, 1 Jan - Mary, the Holy Mother of God  


PARISH NEWS

PARISH OFFICE CLOSURE
The Parish office is closed and will re-open on 11 January 2022. Normal bulletins will resume on the weekend of 15/16 January 2022. 

FATHER VINCENT ON LEAVE
Father Vincent will be on leave, for a well-earned rest, from December - Sun 26th (after 5:00pm Mass) until Wed 29th. Liturgy of the Word/Communion Service will replace the weekday 8:30am morning Masses for Mon, Tues and Wed. Father will be back to celebrate the 7:00pm Mass on Wed 29th December followed by Novena as usual. 

BE SUPER CHARGED WITH THE HOLY SPIRIT
The Catholic Charismatic Renewal Melbourne invite you to the above conference, Friday 14 January 7:00pm to 9:00pm and Saturday 15 January 9:30am to 9:00pm at the Hall under Our Lady’s Church, 49 Nicholson Street, East Brunswick. Cost $40 per person or $70 per couple. Contact @centre@ccr.org.au or call 03 9486 6544. 

JOSEPH’S CORNER
If you would like to be join Joseph’s corner by either being a financial member ($20 per year) or a volunteer performing 20 hours of work per year in support of Joseph’s Corner, please contact them on 9315 2680 for a membership form.